Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised First Lady Melania Trump on Saturday for her role in a localized Russia-Ukraine ceasefire in Oleshky, which is meant to allow humanitarian aid and civilian evacuations.
Melania’s Role in Ceasefire Draws Praise
In a post on X, Rubio said her efforts show “the power of diplomacy and leadership.” He called the deal “a meaningful step toward peace” and said the U.S. remains committed to advancing peace, stability and security.
Both sides also publicly credited her role. Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets thanked Melania Trump and her team for coordinating the two negotiating groups in a video message posted on Telegram. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed she played a coordinating role in the deal, according to Russian state news agency TASS.
What the Deal Covers
The White House said on Friday that Russia and Ukraine agreed to pause military action in the city. The pause would let aid in and prepare an evacuation through a designated safe passage. The truce is set to begin Oct. 29, according to the White House.
Oleshky is a front-line city in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine. About 24,000 people lived there before the war, the White House said. An estimated 1,700 to 2,000 remain, mostly older residents.
“The situation in Oleshky is dire,” said Melania Trump in a press release by the White House. “It was abundantly clear that without my intervention, the possibility to bring humanitarian aid into the city and to evacuate the elderly would be impossible.”
However, the start date is not settled. Al Jazeera reported that a senior Ukrainian official said the truce would begin Oct. 27.
The White House did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s requests for comment.
“My representative and I immediately leveraged the communication channel we established with Russia and Ukraine through the previous six reunifications of 34 children,” said Melania Trump, adding that “all parties have worked around the clock since that moment.”
The truce is city-level, not a broader cessation of hostilities. It follows an “energy ceasefire” announced by President Donald Trump that soon turned out not to exist in practice.
The announcement comes as President Trump presses Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to reach a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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